A Day At The Races
East Rutherford, NJ. Home of the New York sic Giants,New York
sic Jets and harness racing's grandest event- The Hambletonian. Bet you didn't
know that. Or if you even cared. It's like the pro football Grey Cup in Canada.The
winner gets a nice trophy,a sizable purse,and bragging rights. It's legit. And
largely ignored in this country.
If anybody cares to recall the Super Bowl played at Snoopy
(Met Life) Stadium last year,here's a fact: Local bars and businesses in East
Rutherford weren't allowed to use the words 'Super Bowl' in their advertising
during that time. The NFL wouldn't allow it. Or risk getting fined and
prosecuted by somebody(?!?) if you did.Fucking Nazis. If Roger Goodell ever got
a buzz cut and had Hugo Boss design some Gestapo boots for him....
Anyways,back to the Hambo.
I went to my first Hambletonian when I was 17. I was tipped
off about driver John Campbell and his horse Mack Lobell. Sure enough,I bet on
Mack Lobell (albeit underage to wager $) and won. Been Hambo hooked ever since.
This event is a great way to spend a saturday summertime afternoon
in the swamp otherwise known as the New Jersey Meadowlands. Ponies,booze,wagering,cigar smoke,and surprisingly,some serious tail hanging
here. Bold toupee wearing dudes (always at the track) and bored looking,face
painted grade school kids mixed in this crowd. Not quite the pageantry of the
Kentucky Derby.But not quite the ghetto-esque Meadowlands State Fair held every
year in the Met Life Stadium parking lot.
$7 Jameson shots ain't bad. Losing on a trifecta box by a
late push sucks.
The Hambletonian has been run for 90 years. I believe a CBS
Sports broadcast was showing race 13 (the championship) live. But ask anybody
at anytime if they have ever heard of the Hambo. Even where I live (5 miles
from the track),most people don't know of this event. The Iditarod gets way
more press than the Hambo. Drag racing in Englishtown,NJ draws more people on a
average day. Time for that to change. Just let me,Kapn Krude,be the event
organizer for the Hambletonian. Eliminate the kiddie face painting. Stop
booking horrible rock cover bands.Stock a wide variety of wine (sorely lacking).Everybody
should look their sharpest.And have Rutts Hut (NJ's best hot dogs) be the
official Hambo wiener. Etc.Etc.Etc.Make this event an event that would be the
envy of the rest of the nation. Jersey style. Krude style.
No. I didn't win on the big race. I tend to only bet trifecta
bets. Boxed. Wasn't my day. But still had fun. I always do. Congrats to
Pinkman. May your hay be extra tasty today.
Mahalo
KK
@kapn_krude
Tags:
krude experience